Court upholds Alabama act banning same-sex marriage

View full sizeFILE - In Oct. 6, 2009, file photo, Ed Grandis, left, and Juan D. Rondon, hold hands after a bill allowing same-sex marriage in the District of Columbia was introduced at a city council meeting in Washington. On one aspect of whether same-sex couples should have the right to marry, both sides agree: The issue defines what kind of nation we are. Half a dozen states and the District of Columbia have made history by legalizing it, but itâs prohibited elsewhere, and 30 states have placed bans in their constitutions. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, File)

MONTGOMERY, Ala. — An appeals court has ruled that a Mobile County woman can't adopt her female partner's child because of Alabama's law that defines marriage as being between a man and woman.

The Alabama Court of Civil Appeals ruled Friday that the woman can't adopt her partner's child, even though the couple said they were married in California. The unanimous opinion, written by Presiding Judge Bill Thompson, said one member of the couple cannot adopt the other's child. The opinion said marriages between same-sex couples are not recognized in Alabama even if they were conducted in another state.

A supporter of Alabama's law banning same sex marriage, Republican Sen. Gerald Allen of Tuscaloosa, said he believes this is the first time a court has upheld the 2009 Alabama Marriage Protection Act.